More than Coincidence
by katiejo25
Summary: It was more than just coincidence, it was fate. They always were led back together somehow. Will they let this chance pass them by? Jane/Michael post season 5
1. Chapter 1 Happily Ever After?

More Than Coincidence

Chapter 1 Happily ever after?

Fairy tales end with a kiss and a promise of happily ever after, but what happens when the screen fades to black or the page ends? Does the couple really live to be happy ever after? What did that even mean? Jane pondered that as she sat at the kitchen table drinking her coffee, her barely touched breakfast plate in front of her along with a full plate awaiting Rafael.

She sighed before forcing a smile as she heard Rafael come down the stairs. Rafael now owned his own real estate business. It kept him pretty busy. Out of the house most of the day and into the nights at times.

Morning." He said briskly. His hair was wet from the shower and he was dressed for work.

"Breakfast?" Jane asked with a hopeful smile.

He frowned eyeing the breakfast plate. "I got to get to the office. "He said quickly before pecking her on the cheek and leaving. He mumbled "Love you," almost like an afterthought as he shut the door.

Jane sighed once again staring at her coffee. At least he said it this time. Most days he didn't.

Jane went back to her thoughts on fairytales. Was this her happily ever after? Was this the ending to their great love story she wrote so many years ago? She scooped up her plate and Rafael's and emptied the contents in the trash. "No. It wasn't supposed to be this way." She said to herself.

She turned back to look at the empty house. She was alone now. No one to hear her spoken thoughts. Mateo was 16 now, out of the house most of the time with friends and teenage life. Veronica was in school right now. She had just turned 8.

She continued cleaning up the kitchen. They have a wonderful 2 story home. 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, complete with a white picket fence surrounding the home.

Happily, ever after? She questioned again in her mind. They had 2 great kids and a wonderful home. She was a successful writer and his business was booming. Their marriage not so much.

When had it all changed? If Jane was being honest with herself, it was very shortly after they married.

She had found out she was pregnant with Veronica the day before the wedding day. They were both so happy. Their little miracle baby.

It was a couple months after the wedding, the honeymoon ended. Rafael started working longer hours. He began questioning her about everything she did when he was home, whether it was grocery shopping, care for the kids or decorating the home. Basically, anything she did. She felt so little.

He would always apologize after he realized he'd hurt her feelings, but he'd do it again a few days later.

Had it always been this way? Jane wondered. Was she so blinded by love that she didn't see how much he criticized her, how unwilling he was to give her space when she needed it?

"Maybe." She said to herself again. She had been so wrapped up in him. He was her everything and the moment she realized she wasn't his, the doubts kicked in, but at this point she was pregnant with Veronica and they were married. She was not going to get another divorce. She had to stick it out. "It would get better," she had told herself.

Here they were 10 years later. They barely spoke. Slept in separate bedrooms. "It did not get better." Jane again stated out loud.

She felt open to divorce more and more each day. She stayed for Veronica. She was still so young. She didn't want to put her through a divorce. Mateo understood and even encouraged her to leave Rafael. He loved his father, but could see his parents were no longer happy.

She did what she always did when she got into these moods. She called her mother.

"Hey ma." Jane said when Xo picked up on the first ring. Xo had grown to expect these calls from Jane.

"Hey sweetie. How are you doing?"

"I'm okay. Just wanted to hear your voice." Jane said softly.

"Want to come over and we can catch up on our telonovelas?" Xo asked knowing this would cheer up Jane.

"Yeah. That sounds great. We got a few hours before Veronica gets out of school." Jane said grabbing her purse and keys.

She was out the door quickly leaving her dark mood and thoughts of her broken marriage behind.

She mindlessly drove to her Mom and Dad's house. She flipped on the music to brighten her mood. She must have been driving quicker than she thought, because she soon seen blue and red lights behind her.

"Damn." She cursed slowing the car down. Just what she needed. She was sure to hear about it from Rafael later.

She pulled the car to the side of the road and waited. The cop knocked on her window and she quickly rolled it down. She knew who it was the minute she heard his voice.

"License and…. Jane?" Michael stated shocked to see her. He looked almost the same as her did before. Fit and muscular. The only sign of aging were the little creases on his face.

"Michael?!" Jane said surprised as well. There was a moment of silence as they both recovered from the surprise of seeing each other. It had been 10 years.

"You're back in Miami and working as a cop again?" Jane said quickly.

"Yeah, I moved back 6 months ago. Needed to get away from Montana." He said in a tone that suggested he didn't want to get into that any further.

"Well, it is great to see you. Uhh do you want my license and registration?" Jane said with a laugh.

Michael chuckled. "No, I'll let you off with a warning. It was good to see you Jane. "He began to walk back to his car.

"Hey Michael." Jane called sticking her head out of the window.

He turned back. "You want to grab lunch or something?" She took a chance.

He hesitated a moment before saying, "Sure. I'm off around noon if that works for you."

She nodded and they exchanged contact information before he headed back to his car.

She remembered back to one of the lines in her book. _And that was really their last goodbye._

She had left him with a pregnant Charlie that day. She assumed they would never see each other again. Her curiosity peeked wondering what became of them and their child.

She drove the rest of the way to her Mom and Dad's with Michael on her mind and a smile on her face.


	2. Chapter 2 Broken

Chapter 2 Broken

Fate. That was something Michael Cordero had put a lot of faith in once upon a time. He believed that everything happened for a reason. Especially after he met a certain girl.

His love for Jane was always constant for him. It was something he just couldn't seem to get to go away. Even with the way she broke his heart time and time again and went back to Rafael Salano.

The first time it had crushed him. He thought he would never heal from the wounds, but at the same time he still believed deeply in his heart that no matter what they belonged together.

He had said to Xo, "We belong together and I'll never stop believing that." He stayed true to that for many years.

The second time was different. They had been through so much in the last 4 years. It was understandable for her to move on. He had "died." It still devastated him, especially considering who she moved on with.

He grew to accept it. He believed that maybe he was wrong. Their fate was not to be together. They were just stepping stones on their way to a different happily ever after.

So, he moved on to Charlie.

Charlene Rose, or as she went by Charlie. He did fall for her pretty easily. Their banter and bickering soon blossomed into a relationship. Still fresh from the heartbreak, Michael jumped in headfirst wanting to get Jane out of his mind for good.

He didn't expect Charlie to get pregnant the first time they were together, but it happened. "This must be fate," Michael had said. He believed it truly.

Their relationship was sweet in the beginning. They paid attention to what one another needed and they took care of each other. They laughed and loved and enjoyed their time together.

When they went to see Jane one final time to make a deal on the book, Michael's breath caught in his throat at the sight of her.

He knew then that he would always love her. He just did his best to hide that fact from Charlie. She was his partner now. She was his life. Charlie was a bright woman though. It didn't take her long to realize that a piece of his heart still and would always belong to Jane.

Flashforward a year later, they were walking around the store and he caught sight of Jane's new book and smiled that "Jane" smile. This look did not go unnoticed by Charlie.

"Just buy it." Charlie stated shortly brushing past Michael as she headed for the checkout.

He grabbed the book and tossed it in his basket. "I just want to see how it all turned out."

"That's fine." Charlie said giving him a blank look. It wasn't fine. Things had not been fine for them for a while.

Back to before the baby came. Michael had been so happy when they found out they were having a boy. He had visions in his head of teaching him how play sports, how to wrangle a bull, how to a ride a horse and telling him stories of the good old days of being a cop and then a cowboy in Montana.

Again, Michael Cordero felt it was fate. Everything was working out. He was with Charlie and he was happy. He barely ever thought of Jane.

They had had a small wedding. Just close family and friends. It was just as they wanted. Everything was falling into place.

Finally, the day came for little Michael to make his entrance in the world. Charlie went into labor early in the morning and they headed to the hospital.

Everything seemed to be progressing as it should, until it wasn't. Suddenly, the baby's heart rate dropped very low. Alarms were ringing and doctors and nurses swarmed the room booting Michael out into the waiting room. He remembered kissing Charlie quickly assuring her everything would be okay before leaving. Everything had to be okay. This was their fate. This was their happy ending.

Still, he paced anxiously outside for over an hour.

When the nurse came out with tears in her eyes. He knew. And that was the day Michael Cordero stopped believing in fate. He was a broken man from that day on.

Michael and Charlie's marriage dissolved very quickly after that day. They were both so grief stricken. When they should have been leaning on each other, they pulled further away. Michael tried as much as a broken man could, but the more he tried the more she pulled away.

They made it a little over a year after that, but one day Michael woke up to a note telling him goodbye. She'd always love him, but she just couldn't do it anymore. He wasn't surprised. He had been expecting this for months.

They sold the house, signed the divorce papers and bid their farewells to one another for good.

He stayed in Montana for 7 more years before coming back to Miami. He decided to go back to being a cop. A decision he had been going back and forth on since he had gotten his memories back all those years ago.

Back to present day. Michael got back into his vehicle and drove off.

The last person he had expected to see was Jane. He honestly didn't know how to feel. At one point in his life, his heart would have glowed at the sight of her. Now, he just felt numb. Since, the death of their child and his divorce, Michael hadn't been able to feel very many emotions.

He drove back to the station around 1130. Glanced at his phone. He should text her and cancel. This wasn't a good idea.

He picked up his phone and dropped it. It went under the seat. He dug around for it for some time before finally getting ahold of it.

He began to text her and the phone restarted. Michael cursed under his breath and quickly turned the phone back on only to have the battery die. He opened his glove compartment. No phone charger.

He sighed. Guess he was going to lunch. He gathered his stuff and took it into the station before heading to the restaurant him and Jane had agreed on.

Even though, Michael could no longer recognize it, the wheels of fate were turning and he was heading in the direction he was supposed to be.


	3. Chapter 3 Stuck in the Past

Chapter 3 Stuck in the Past

Life had its ups and downs. Backs and forths. It was similar to the ocean he had grown to like watching late nights after work when he didn't want to go home. The waves went in all different directions. He compared it to his life.

Rafael Salano arrived at his office. He watched the hustle and bustle as people began their day. Several were headed out for appointments. Some were on their computers. Some were on their phones talking to potential buyers. He had come so far, accomplished so much. Why did he feel so empty?

Jane. She was once his everything. His shining light in the middle of a thunderstorm. When did that change? Why did that change? Rafael thought of this often.

It all went back to a few weeks before they were married. She went to meet up with Michael to discuss getting permission publishing her book.

_She worked out everything with him as she had said on the phone on her drive home. Everything was great. When she got home to him, he realized it wasn't._

"_How did it go with Michael?" Rafael questioned._

"_I told it went great." Jane said simply as she set her purse on the kitchen table. Mateo was asleep for the night._

"_It's done?" Rafael again questioned. He needed to hear it. He needed to hear she was done with him finally._

"_Yeah, he signed the agreement and we said our goodbyes." Jane said quietly._

"_That's great." Rafael said sighing with relief._

"_Yeah… he's even got himself a girl. Charlie. Can't say I approve of his choice… She was dreadful when I met her in Montana, but he seems happy and she's pregnant!" Jane said the last part turning away from Rafael. He sensed the tone of her voice. She was trying to be strong. _

"_That's great." He said after a moment._

_Jane turned to him. "Yeah." He saw it then. That flicker of sadness, regret, jealousy and then it was gone._

_She pulled him to her and squeezed tight. "I love you so much." _

"_I love you Jane." Rafael said. He held her close, staring out doubtfully. He could feel her fighting back tears. He knew, he had always known. She would never love him like she loved Michael. _

_He wanted her though. He wanted her so bad, so he ignored it. He buried it. He never mentioned his name again, but those feelings don't always stay buried. _

He stood in his office now. He abruptly left the house this morning. He knew she wanted him to sit down and enjoy breakfast with her. Maybe act like they were married again. She was always so hopeful. He just couldn't bring himself to do it.

He loved her. Lord know he did, but he stopped being inlove with her a long time ago. About the time he realized there was 3 people in his marriage himself, Jane and Michael no matter what she said. He was always there.

His name casually mentioned with her parents or Alba, he watched her. Her face changed at the mention of Michael. She would brighten, almost glow at the sound of his name as if she was wishing he'd appear at the sound of his name. Very quickly she would recover and that flicker of sadness would come and again it would be gone. She'd cover it, comment briefly on him and then go to talking about the next subject. It was so quick, but he seen it.

He knew her. He knew her facial expressions. He knew she was keeping what she was feeling from him. He knew she was still inlove with him and always would be, even if she didn't realize it herself.

He sat down at his desk. Listened to his voicemails. A few from potential buyers, and one from Petra. He listened to Petra's voice with a smile.

"Hey Raf. The girls flight just took off for Paris. I know you said your goodbyes, but they wanted me to give you their love. They will miss you. It's bittersweet, but I know they will have a wonderful time with their group this summer. Anyway, I wanted to celebrate being child free and my divorce being finalized. Getting a few drinks at the Marbela tonight. Join me if you can. Please bring Jane too if possible."

Rafael stared blankly, thinking before picking up his phone. Him and Petra had become very close over the past several months. She was divorcing JR after several years of marriage. Turns out JR had not been faithful for some time. Petra was heartbroken, but as resilient as she is, she prevailed. She came out stronger, and more confident and beautiful than ever.

Their friendship had grown a lot. He looked to her as a confidant when he was having problems with Jane. She always listened carefully and gave her input. She loved Jane. She loved him. She just wanted them to be happy.

She had grown so much. No longer the jealous woman trying to keep them apart. She truly wanted them to work things out.

Rafael began texting her back. "I'll be there."

He then texted Jane. "Meeting Petra tonight. Post-divorce celebration. Be home late." He thought about adding a "love you," but didn't.

He sent another text as an afterthought. "Come if you can find a sitter for Veronica." She probably wouldn't.

He let out a breath and headed out the door for his meeting to close a sale on a house. Time to get his mind on work.


End file.
